Internal Market Perspective Research Articles

The effect of athlete endorsement on employees' organizational identification: a case study utilizing an Olympic athlete

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the effects of sponsorship on organizational identification among employees of companies that sponsor individual athletes from the perspective of internal marketing.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was conducted in July 2021 targeting employees of Company A. Specifically, employees were invited to participate via email notifications sent through the company's intranet. To clarify the impact of company sponsorships for individual athletes on employee organizational identification, this study focused on the relationship between Company A and an athlete they support. Psychometric scales were used to measure the factors of the hypothetical model, such as sponsor fit and attitudes toward sponsorship. The analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS 28.0 and AMOS 25 Graphics, and the hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.FindingsWe collected a total of 365 survey responses in two weeks. All the hypotheses in this study were supported, indicating that athlete identification and brand knowledge had a significant positive effect on perceived sponsor fit. In addition, attitudes toward the employer significantly have positive relationships with brand commitment and organizational identification. This study showed that perceived sponsor fit plays an important role in employee perceptions of sponsorship. Athlete endorsement is effective from an internal marketing perspective.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is the selection of the research subject. Conducting the same survey targeting individual athletes with different characteristics may lead to discoveries about the impact of corporate sponsorship on employee organizational identification.Practical implicationsThe practical implication of this study is that business executives should also use sponsorship for individual athletes as a means to unify and motivate their employees. In selecting athletes for sponsorship, it is necessary to select individuals who fit the company image. In this process, listening to employees' opinions may help select the most suitable athlete who matches the company's image.Originality/valueMany studies conducted on sports sponsorship have focused on the impact on potential customers, from external marketing. Even in studies examining the effects of sports sponsorship on employees, the sponsored subjects are typically teams or events. Therefore, the originality of this study lies in examining the impact of athlete endorsement on the company's employees from the perspective of internal marketing.

Banking Union — a stability-oriented macroeconomic or an efficiency-oriented microeconomic project?

ABSTRACT The article analyses the Banking Union from an economic-constitutional perspective. It argues that the areas covered by the Banking Union fall substantively mainly under the internal market area of EU law, where the microeconomic efficiency-based rationales and objectives are essential in legal assessments. In contrast, the euro area macroeconomic and stability-oriented rationales guided the decision on the Banking Union and the allocation of banking supervision to the ECB. The article claims that these different constitutional rationales, and the constitutional locus of the Banking Union, could have implications for the broader constitutional architecture and even for the EU legal order. Indeed, the microeconomic part of the EU economic-constitutional model suits legal approach to integration, but the macroeconomic rationales have a more problematic relation with law and courts. This could call for a resurgence of the internal market perspective in Banking Union going forward to remedy some of the constitutional concerns.

How Internal Marketing Drives Employees' Internal Relationship Quality of Service Organizations Between Mainland China and Taiwan: The Moderating Roles of Internal Relationship Investment and Leader-Member Exchange.

Recently, issues of human resource management gradually attract a lot of attention from organizational behavior scholars, thus how to effectively improve service employees’ job attitude and performance to meet the needs of stakeholders is one of the key issues in internal marketing. Based on the perspective of internal marketing, the study transforms the relevant factors applied to maintaining external customer relations into internal employee-oriented factors, so as to increase the understanding of the relationship between internal service recovery and internal relationship quality (IRQ). This study aims to explore (1) whether internal service recovery enhances IRQ; (2) whether internal relationship investment (IRI) positively moderates relationship between internal service recovery and IRQ; and (3) whether effectiveness of internal service recovery differentiates under different exchange relationship (high/low quality leader-member exchange). In this study, a total of 206 Mainland China and 250 Taiwanese participants were collected. In this study, a variance-based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was performed to test the proposed hypothesizes and conduct comparative analysis. Empirical results in both samples show that internal service recovery has positive and significant effects on IRQ; internal relationship investment and leader-member exchange (LMX) positively and significantly moderate the relationship between internal service recovery and IRQ. Finally, based on the results, this study provides some discussions, suggestions and managerial implications for future studies in organizational management.

Believe to go the extra mile: the influence of internal CSR initiatives on service employee organizational citizenship behaviors

PurposeLeveraging the power of corporate social responsibility (CSR) is strategically important to corporations. Although various studies have explored the positive effects of CSR, few have been devoted to the investigation of CSR related to service employees from the internal marketing perspective. Therefore, this study fills this research gap by developing a conceptual model based on social influence theory to explain how internal CSR initiatives affect service employees' attitudes and behaviors.Design/methodology/approachThis study develops and empirically tests a theoretical model examining the impact of internal CSR initiatives (i.e. internal dissemination of and management support for CSR) on service employees' attitudes toward an organization (i.e. employee–company identification and value congruence), which ultimately enhance their organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) toward customers, other employees and the organization. Survey data from 271 frontline employees of service firms actively involved in CSR-related activities were examined with structural equation modeling.FindingsThe results suggest that perceived internal dissemination of and management support for CSR affect service employees' citizenship behaviors toward customers, other employees and the organization through the mediation of employee–company identification and value congruence.Practical implicationsInternal CSR initiatives are highly related to service employees' various OCBs that are beneficial to improving the service performance of firms. Therefore, it is imperative for companies to devote attention to internal marketing dissemination while promoting CSR. In addition, as managers' attitudes and behaviors trickle down to employees, service supervisors' support of CSR activities plays a significant role in forming employee perceptions of a firm's CSR dedication.Originality/valueThis study represents one of the first to view internal CSR initiatives as an effective internal marketing lever. Moreover, the relationship between internal CSR initiatives and service employees' OCBs – OCB toward customers, other employees and the organization – is proposed and tested with an empirical model, providing significant contributions.

When and How Does Sustainable HRM Improve Customer Orientation of Frontline Employees? Satisfaction, Empowerment, and Communication

This study investigated the relationship between sustainable human resource management (HRM) practices, employee satisfaction, and customer orientation of frontline employees (FLEs) in the hotel industry from the perspective of internal marketing. Specifically, the study focused on three facets of sustainable HRM practices (i.e., training, reward, and benefit) as well as organizational empowerment and communication as FLE-supportive contexts. Although some studies have examined the relationship between HRM practices and customer orientation, they overlooked the importance of service context in facilitating FLE customer orientation. Thus, this study developed a comprehensive framework based on social exchange theory and self-determination theory. The results show that all three facets of the sustainable HRM practices were positively related to FLEs’ satisfaction. FLEs’ satisfaction was also positively related to their customer orientation. Furthermore, both organizational empowerment and communication moderated the relationship between FLEs’ satisfaction and customer orientation, which showed a positive relationship only when FLEs perceived high organizational empowerment or communication. The research findings provide beneficial theoretical and practical implications.

Building better employer brands through employee social media competence and online social capital

AbstractDespite the significant and increasing influence of social media on employees' work lives, there is limited focus on employees' social media competencies from an employer branding or internal marketing perspective. Building on social identity and social exchange theories, this paper links employees' social media competence to an increase in online brand citizenship behaviour and reduction in feelings of psychological contract violation towards their employer's brand. We also examine the distinct mediatory effects of two forms of online social capital—bonding mediates the influence of employee social media competence on online brand citizenship and feelings of psychological contract violation, whilst Bridging only mediates the effect of social media competence on feelings of psychological contract violation. In doing so, we contribute to extant literature in two ways: (1) Address the need for research on social media in relation to employer branding; and (2) highlight the importance of building employee‐to‐employee and employee‐to‐employer relationships by virtual means in the context of employer branding. Therefore, this paper responds to calls for research that advances more responsible approaches to employer branding and internal marketing; that is, approaches that take into account employee competencies (emphasise need for skill development) as well as wellbeing (emphasise need for support).

Revisiting Internal Marketing for the Determinants of Job (Dis)Satisfaction by Using Asymmetric Approach

Research in the fields of organizational behavior, human resources, or sustainable development management has paid much attention to employee job satisfaction and suggests it is critical to a firm obtaining a dominant position and gaining competitive advantage in a competitive environment. From the internal marketing perspective, how to satisfy employee job satisfaction to retain the valuable human resources needed to achieve sustainable development of the organization is a major concern of scholars and practitioners. However, most studies focus on above-average job satisfaction and relatively neglect below-average job satisfaction. Accordingly, this study categorized relevant antecedents into causal configurations for identifying the sufficient conditions of job (dis)satisfaction. Specifically, this study investigated how employees can achieve job satisfaction or dissatisfaction based on a fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). Most problems and theories of social science are formulated in terms of sets and set relations, while study employs asymmetric thinking in data analysis of previous linear relationships. The fsQCA found three and two causal configurations to be sufficient for high employee job satisfaction and dissatisfaction, respectively. For instance, the results indicate one configuration, namely task-related, innovation-related, coworker-related, and personal-related characteristics present but supervisor-related characteristics absent, can achieve high employee job satisfaction when the values of task-related, innovation-related, coworker-related, and personal-related characteristics are high with lower values of supervisor-related characteristics.

Research on Re-employment and Career Education Program from the Perspective of Internal Marketing : through L Company Case Analysis

Research on Re-employment and Career Education Program from the Perspective of Internal Marketing : through L Company Case Analysis

A Study on the Effect of Retirement Education from the Perspective of Internal Marketing

A Study on the Effect of Retirement Education from the Perspective of Internal Marketing

골프장 캐디의 직무스트레스, 직무만족, 조직몰입간의 인과 관계

This study focused on gaining a better understanding of job attitudes toward golf course caddies. Reviewing the previous studies, few studies have focused on golf course caddies’s job attitudes such as job stress, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. Thus, this study aimed to examine the relationships among job stress, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment of golf course caddies. In order to accomplish this study, the proposed model was developed based on the review of the empirical studies and it tested the causal relationships among them. total 230 questionnaires were distributed to caddies at two private membership golf courses and one public golf course using a convenient sampling method. Among them, twenty-nine questionnaires were excluded because they were not fully completed. There were 201 usable questionnaires. Data were analyzed with frequency analysis, descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, reliability analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling using PASW Statistics 18.0 and AMOS 18.0. The results of this study indicated that internal and external job satisfaction of golf course caddies has been negatively represented by the degree of physical and psychological job stress of golf course caddies. Job satisfaction had a positive impact on organizational commitment of golf course caddies. That is, job satisfaction composed by internal and external factors was strong predictor of affective commitment to the golf course. Job stress didn’t have a direct and significant influence on organizational commitment of golf course caddies. Based on the results of this study, it might have the fully mediating role of job satisfaction of golf course caddies in the relationship between job stress and organizational commitment. From an internal marketing perspective of golf courses, the findings of this study may provide the valuable information and the extensive knowledge to effectively manage golf courses. The findings also contribute to a provision of the practical applications for managers of golf courses.

Understanding Employee Delight and Voice From the Internal Marketing Perspective

This study examines the relationship between internal marketing (employee delight and voice) and employee behavior from a marketing perspective. The response rate of the completed 335 surveys was 45%. Structural equation modeling was used in order to examine the proposed model. Results indicate that internal marketing practices are positively related to employee job satisfaction, employee job satisfaction was negatively related to employee turnover intention, and employee job satisfaction was positively related to employee commitment to customer service. Implications for the industry and future research are offered.

Exit Taxes on Companies in the Context of the EU Internal Market

In Daily Mail, the Court of Justice (CJ) ruled that the freedom of establishment did not confer on companies the right to leave jurisdiction of a Member State (MS). Ever since, exit taxation of companies has been an area full of obscurities and unknowns. Among them are: restrictive effect of non-harmonized connecting factors; an appropriate comparability standard; the absence of comparability as a ground of breach versus applying the fiscal territoriality principle at the level of justification; and criteria for an internally coherent system of exit taxation rules. Discussion of the mentioned issues aims at defining how far EU law can affect national provisions on exit taxation. In particular, the developments that the CJ case law has undergone over a past decade induce to make an abrupt conclusion: double taxation in an exit taxation case can be a fault of an MS, if viewed from the internal market perspective.

Gaining Access to Intrafirm Knowledge: An Internal Market Perspective on Knowledge Sharing

This study explores how account managers—employees who operate as entrepreneurial customer boundary spanners—obtain intrafirm knowledge (organizational and expertise knowledge) from diverse colleagues so as to develop tailor-made solutions for their customers. Access to intrafirm knowledge is obtained through two independent knowledge-based exchanges within internal knowledge markets: account managers invest in different activities in order to signal communal and deal-maker reputations. In exchange, colleagues share organizational and expertise knowledge that ultimately contribute to account managers' performance. The types of knowledge shared by colleagues depend on the reputations of account managers.

Marketing Interno e a Formação de Sujeitos Reflexivos

Internal marketing perspective has gaining primordial space. It happens through an interdisciplinary process with human management discipline and is based on the assumption that a significant part of the organizational success depends on the attitudes, commitment and performance of people in an organization, above all the ones that interact with the customers. Assuming the premise that such procedure depends on the relationship between the contact employees and the customers of an organization, we revise in this essay fundamental notions of interpresonel relationships to discuss the role of the internal marketing in the formation of employees that becomes reflexive subjects. We understand such premise as a fundamental characteristic for those to carry out his/her role in a conscious way. Our conclusion is a theoretical proposal of how this can be developed.

Building corporate branding through internal marketing: the case of the UK retail bank industry

PurposeStarting from the premise that there are critical issues that should drive brand success, this study seeks to investigate the way the UK retail banking industry has sought to build and sustain a strong brand by launching an internal marketing (IM) programme throughout its branch network. Also aims to shed light on the themes of branding in the financial services industry and the relationship between IM and branding.Design/methodology/approachThe study was qualitative and exploratory in nature, since the aim was to explore branch managers' and employees' views and experiences of IM within the UK retail bank industry. Data were collected by carrying out in‐depth qualitative interviews with organisational members working in different positions within 35 business units that represented seven different UK retail banking organisations. The qualitative data were analysed by using the grounded theory approach developed by Strauss and Corbin in 1990.FindingsThe data analysis revealed four core themes as constitutive of IM, namely: internal customers; training and education; quality standards; and rewards systems. These four themes are enacted on a constant basis in order to construct a certain sort of organisational reality, one that sets the foundation on building and sustaining a strong corporate brand by changing the organisational culture to one which is more “people”, service‐ and customer‐oriented.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focused on one industry, the UK retail bank industry, in order to enhance one's understanding and knowledge regarding the IM theory and practice. This needs to be taken into consideration in generalising the findings to other sectors and geographic markets.Practical implicationsThe research shows that the banks studied have adopted IM due to realising that employees represent a valuable source for building and differentiating the corporate brand, since they have a powerful impact on consumers' perceptions of both the brand and the organisation. The IM perspective has the potential to integrate all staff in the branding process and create an organisational culture that sets the foundation for building a strong corporate brand.Originality/valueThe current literature on IM has revealed that there is no universally accepted and adopted IM programme and that those organisations that have adopted IM have developed their own “custom‐made” approaches. The paper reveals the IM implementation approach adopted by the UK retail banks studied.

Truck driver turnover: an internal marketing perspective

Carriers and industry analysts agree that driver turnover is the largest problem facingthe industry today. Truck drivers regularly move from one trucking company to another or they change to careers out of the industry. Opinions for high driver turnover are diverse, such as long hours and extended time away from home, poor advancement opportunities, a lack of respect, and old/uncomfortable equipment. In this article the authors examine the truck driver turnover problem from an internal marketing perspective. Membership, socialization, identity, structural, interpersonal, and environmental issues are examined as primary influences on desired quality of truck driver employment. Suggestions are made concerning the implementation of an internal marketing strategy that in the long run might significantlv enhance driver retention.

The Effects of Entrepreneur Characteristics and Gender-Based Management and Communication Styles from an Internal Marketing Perspective, Within Both a Small and Large Business Environment

The similarities and differences in management and communication styles of male and female entrepreneurs are considered because the authors felt that these might interact with recognized entrepreneurial behavior and hence impact on the working life of employees and the performance of business enterprises. This is done through an extensive literature search and a study of empirical research, one a study within archetypal small businesses and one within a small business unit of a large organization.The relationship of gender differences on entrepreneurial characteristics and the resultant impact on the success or otherwise of business enterprises is looked at in great depth. A management process (internal marketing) framework is then discussed in relationship to these gender and entrepreneurial characteristics and the conclusion is drawn that adopting such a management process is more likely to be attractive to female entrepreneurs and less so to the male entrepreneur.

Health care innovations from the internal marketing perspective.

This paper presents an opportunity to apply the marketing concept internally to the diffusion and implementation of innovative services which can help organizations to achieve an advantageous external market position. An internal marketing communications model is discussed in this paper to identify factors and relationships influencing the internal diffusion and implementation of innovative services. Three case studies are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the model to a specific innovation in the health care industry. The notion of marketing innovative services from the inside out also is critical for other service firms. Further operational models are needed to present opportunities for marketing of innovative services.